Imagine being accused of something that you did not do, but the accuser’s story was believed and there was not any evidence for the crime they said you committed, this happened multiple times during the Salem witch trials. Many were blamed just because someone in the town did not like them of even envied them, the judges had to put the blame on someone even if there was not clear evidence, putting many to hang that were innocent. Fear is something that most people will over react to, to keep themselves from feeling scared. There has been multiple incidents that has made people overreact and change rules or accuse people, innocent people at that, for example the Salem witch trials, Japanese internment camps and most recently school shootings. …show more content…
When the witch trials began the, “Long-held hatreds of neighbors could now be openly expresses, and vengeance could be taken..” (The Crucible, Act 1). Many of the people in the town were using other’s fear of witches to get back at someone they did not like. In reaction to having the townspeople's fear, the judges were quick to rule anyone accused of witchcraft were put in jail and then hung. This was also, “ a long overdue opportunity for everyone so inclined to express publicly his guilt and sins, under the cover of accusations against the victims.” (The Crucible, Act 1). The townspeople were able to confess to their sins without feeling like they were going to be judged by others in the town. Accusing others is one way people can overreact to …show more content…
Schools have been creating new rules and procedures to help secure school campuses which is helping the parents of children attending public school feel reassured about their child's safety. The recent school shooting in Parkland Florida caused a lot of new safety precautions around the school, there are, “ fewer entrances, with law enforcement posted at each point; identification badges that students and teachers are required to wear at all times; and clear, plastic backpacks the only bookbags allowed on campus.” These new rules that the school were coming up with were something that was necessary. The school officials had to take charge and show the parents of students that the children were going to be safe and well taken care of. The principal of the school in Parkland Florida, Ty Thompson, compared the new safety system, “entering in a sporting event, or even Disney World.” If this safety precaution is used at other places why is school any different, the precautions are designed to help ensure the safety of the attendees as well as the people who work there. Most parents might say that these new rules are helping the kids feel more safe being at school, and that the rules are giving them reinsurance on their child's
Witchcraft started in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. Superstition started when women were accused of acting strangely. These superstitions turned into trials, and later lead to mounds of hanged people. Most of the people accused were innocent, but the harsh judge rulings left them with nothing to live for. The only options for the tried, no matter if guilty or not, were to claim guilty, living the rest of their life in prison, or to plead not guilty and hang. Due to both consequences being equally as punishable, many people isolated themselves from society. Unfortunately, some people caused the uprising of the salem witch trials more than others did. In the play The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, Abigail Williams single handedly attributed to the
I believe that Abigail Williams is to blame for turning the town of Salem against many people, and I think it is her fault that several people were killed. Abigail Williams sends the town into a state of hysteria by accusing men and women of practicing the satanic art of witchcraft. Abigail’s flaws - her lustful desire for John Proctor, her deceptive habit of lying in order to retain her good name in the town, and her selfishness and obsessive aspiration for power – led her to be ultimately responsible for the catastrophe of the witch hunt in Salem.
Before reading historian Marilynne K. Roach’s Six Women of Salem: The Untold Story of the Accused and Their Accusers in the Salem Witch Trials, it must be clear that I hadn’t known much about the Salem Witch Trials besides what knowing they were in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692-93. I only recognized that there were a few unfortunate women who had been accused of being witches, sentenced to their deathbeds, and brutally burned in front of the whole town. After reading Roach’s book, I’ve found out that this thought alone was false because none of the accused were meant to be burned at all but instead the whole town was called out to watch these women being hung. It created an example for the town and explained to them the consequences of being convicted of witchcraft. What I’m now recognizing is what I did ignore: how it came to be and how it all ended, who was accused, and was giving these accusations out.
Randomly accusing innocent people of being devilish, atrocious witches is extremely far fetched and unusual for people to do today. However, in the 1690’s in Salem, Massachusetts, it was a daily occurrence. After seeing people do odd things happening at the time, people got scared and accused them of witches to get rid of them, send them to jail, and possibly kill them. Even worse, the accusers may have actually been sick or insane, or they could of been faking it to get revenge on their enemies. Why would these people randomly accuse innocent people of being witches? Something had to have caused all the mass Hysteria leading to the witch trials in Salem.
Fatal flaws are personality imperfections found within characters. Tragedy was a common occurrence in The Crucible. Many of these great tragedies happening in The Crucible, were a result of a tragic flaw or flaws like lust and pride embodied by John Proctor during the play.These flaws could also be seen as noble qualities at times, and play a crucial part in his downfall and death.
In Act II, Proctor's conflict with authority increases as the court comes to arrests his wife. He already does not like the court and for them to come to his own home and take his wife to jail is just out of the question! To help the reader understand the condition of Salem at the beginning of Act II, Kinsella explains that "Salem is in the grip of mounting hysteria" (1267). Kinsella is correct the town first starts out with Betty not waking up, then Abigail Williams acusing practically everyone in Salem about being witches and it moves up from there eventually leading to Proctors fait.
In Arthur Miller’s play, “The Crucible”, a dramatic story unfolds about hatred and deception among the townspeople of Salem, Massachusetts in the year 1692. During this time, people were being accused of practicing witchcraft and conjuring with the devil. Once accused, all one could do was deny the practice and hang for it or confess and be condemned to prison. Many took advantage of this, including a young girl by the name Abigail Williams who is the main character in the play. Who is to be blamed for the death of the innocently accused? Many can argue and say that other characters in the story share blame in the Salem Witch Trials. Though, the ultimate responsibility belongs to Abigail for the deaths of many innocent people during this time.
Life as a human is dictated by an inborn hunger or purpose, and people, in general, will act on this hunger for their own personal gain in their individual ways. This hunger, be it for wealth, land, love, power, revenge, or pride, can, and will be the undoing or failing of all mankind as Miller so clearly points out in his play 'The Crucible';. This essay will explore the motives of characters within the play and even the motives of Arthur Miller himself and therefore show how conflict stems from certain recognisable human failings including those mentioned above, fear, and hysteria.
In Arthur Miller 's famous play The Crucible, innocent people are falsely accused of witchcraft and are killed as a result. Even the thought of witchcraft in Salem, Massachusetts in the late 1600s would put the whole village into mass hysteria. Mass hysteria refers to collective delusions of threats to society that spread rapidly through rumors and fear. This is the main cause of why so many people were arrested and killed for witchcraft. One way people could save themselves was by falsely confessing to have performed witchcraft. Many people did not do this though. This is because the townspeople were held to very strict moral values and must uphold their good name in society. They did not want a bad reputation. In The Crucible, by Arthur
'A container in which metals are heated, involving a change. A severe test or trial.';
Whenever there’s a problem people tend to blame anyone they can, cause they think why not? But when it comes to The Crucible almost every character could be blamed for making witchcraft a big deal. But three major characters come to mind Judge Danforth, Mary Warren, and The Putnams.
The Salem witch trials were a time period when any individual could be accused of witchcraft for numerous reasons. In The Crucible, Arthur Miller focuses on the deviation of the trials and how the town’s most religious and honest members of the community are tried with witchcraft. John Proctor, the town’s most honest man, is accused of being a witch and must decide if he should confess or not. Proctor’s confession will stop the town from rebelling and uphold the reputations of Deputy Governor Danforth and Reverend Parris. Hale also wishes for Proctor’s confession so he does not have to feel responsible if Proctor were to be hanged for his witchcraft accusations. The confession of Proctor would convince others in the town to confess to their
The witchcraft trials became a significant event in Salem. There were 20 innocent people that died and many more accused. There is a debate on whether who was the main reason for the witchcraft trials and all the deaths of the accused. There are good arguments on about every side. Judge Danforth, Abigail Williams, John Proctor, Reverend Hale, Reverend Parris, Elizabeth Proctor and Mary Warren are all the main arguments for the blame. Personally, I believe that Abigail Williams is the main reason why the witchcraft trials came about and that so many people have died and were accused.
After all of the witch trials in 1692 concluded a total of 20 people were hanged all because of people craving attention and personal gain. There are three people depicted in Arthur Miller's The Crucible that are most responsible for this and they are, Abigail Williams, Judge Danforth, and Thomas Putnam. Abigail Williams is mostly responsible for the Salem witch trials because she was the first person to start accusing innocent people of witchcraft. Judge Danforth is responsible because he is not concerned about justice, all he cares about is being correct about the witch trials. Lastly Thomas Putnam is guilty of causing the witch trials because he was able to have people accuse other people so he could claim their land for himself. The witch trials were a senseless massacre and all because Abigail Williams, Judge Danforth, and Thomas Putnam were only concerned about them selves, not the innocent ones around them.
In Salem, during the times of the Salem witch trials, the church and the people were very close. This is what led to the hysteria and chaos which was the Salem witch trials. It also led to many conflicts between the characters in this book, because anyone who was against the church was considered a criminal. Some of these conflicts were between; Abigail and the other children, Danforth and the town folk, and John Proctor with himself and his wife.